Actress Shelley Duvall has been out of the limelight for 14 years, and now she’s resurfaced in a sit-down interview with Dr. Phil. The actress, who reportedly has been living in a small Texas town for the past decade, is struggled with what sounds like a devastating mental illness that includes delusions and possibly paranoia. Stanley Kubrick’s daughter Vivian is speaking out against the TV psychologist for exploiting Shelley’s struggles for ratings and money instead of quietly offering her help with dignity.
“You are putting Shelley Duvall ‘on show’ while she is suffering from a pitiable state of ill health. Unquestionably, this is purely a form of lurid and exploitative entertainment — it’s appallingly cruel,” Vivian wrote to Dr. Phil.“Shelly Duvall was a movie star … whatever dignity a mere unfortunate creature might have in this world, is denied her by your displaying her in this way.”
UPDATE: Vivian Kubrick, who is a Scientologist, has set up a GoFundMe account for Shelley’s medical treatment. There is isn’t much information given about what this treatment is supposed to involve, but the location given is Clearwater, FL, where Scientology is based.
Shelley is originally from the Houston, TX area, and was majoring in nutrition with she was discovered by Robert Altman. She wasn’t pursuing acting at the time, but the auteur saw something special in Shelley and convinced her to act in his 1970 film Brewster McCloud. She went on to star in several other Altman films, including Nashville and 3 Women. She won the best actress award at Cannes for her mesmerizing portrayal of Millie Lammoreaux is the artsy, surreal film. From there her celebrity rose when she was cast in Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining. According to her co-star Jack Nicholson, Kubrick treated Shelley much differently than he treated Jack.
According to Nicholson, Kubrick kept Shelley isolated and forced her to perform the emotionally wrenching “baseball bat” scene 127 times. Her tears and red face were genuine reactions of exhaustion and emotional turmoil. According to Jack, Shelley showed Kubrick clumps of her hair that was coming out to prove to him the toll the role was taking on her.
In the book The Complete Kubrick, Shelley wrote about how difficult the role was for her firsthand: “From May until October I was really in and out of ill health because the stress of the role was so great. Stanley pushed me and prodded me further than I’ve ever been pushed before. It’s the most difficult role I’ve ever had to play.”
